Nebraska Football: J.D. Spielman leaves Nebraska, enters transfer portal
Nebraska football is losing a key part of their offense.
It was the news we all expected, but it still hurts a bit to see. According to a report from Sean Callahan of HuskeOnline.com, Nebraska Football and JD Spielman have officially parted ways.
According to the report, Spielman plans to enter the transfer portal on Monday.
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Spielman has not been around the program for the past couple of months. He took a leave of absence from the program on March 2, and since then his whereabouts have been unknown.
The wide receiver is third all-time in Nebraska history with 170 receptions and 2,546 receiving yards. Last season, he recorded 49 receptions for 898 receiving yards and five touchdowns. His best game came against Illinois. In what was a great game for the entire Nebraska offense, Spielman was a big part of that. He recorded seven receptions for 160 yards, averaging 22.9 yards per reception. A 41-yard catch was his longest of the afternoon.
Personally, I had a feeling that this was going to happen. Just last week, I was wondering where he went. Between his lack of connection with the Nebraska football coaching staff, and the fact that no new details were coming out about his whereabouts, I had a feeling he would leave the program.
Nebraska football will definitely need to have a “next man up” mentality here. They do have a loaded receivers room, and I would look for players such as Wan’Dale Robinson and Jamie Nance to step up. Demaryion Houston could be a big playmaker as well. However, what none of them have is experience, and that’s what Spielman brought to the table.
This is a big loss for Nebraska as far as the 2020 season goes. It leaves Adrian Martinez with one less weapon offensively. Not only that, Martinez and Spielman had a rapport that was extremely evident last season. Now, Martinez will have to get that rapport with someone else. That of course is easier said than done. Spielman was Martinez’s security blanket offensively, and you could always count on the wideout to be able to catch the tough throw or deep ball down the field.
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I’ll be interested to see how Nebraska is able to offset the loss of Spielman in 2020. They have weapons, but can any of them carry the load that Spielman did in this offense? This leaves them a big hole at the position at the moment. Spielman was expected to be counted on heavily in this offense, and his departure certainly thins the position.